Corruption of the Hindu word nawab, the plural of naib. An administrator of a province and commander of the Indian army under the Mogul Empire. These men acquired great wealth and lived in Eastern splendour, so that they gave rise to the phrase, Rich as the nawâb, corrupted into Rich as a nabob. In England we apply the phrase to a merchant who has attained great wealth in the Indies, and has returned to live in his native country.